The commenda was a medieval contract which developed in Italy around the 13th century, and was an early form of limited partnership.^[1][2] The commenda was an agreement between an investing partner and a traveling partner to conduct a commercial enterprise, usually overseas.^[3] The terms of the partnership varied, and are usually categorized by modern historians as unilateral commenda and bilateral commenda, based on the share of contributions and profits between the partners.^[4] The bilateral commenda was known in Venice as collegantia or colleganza.^[5] The commenda has been described as a foundational innovation in the history of finance and trade.^[4][6][7]

The commenda was a partnership between an investing partner (called the commendator, or socius stans) and a traveling partner (called the tractator or socius procertans).^[8] The investing partner would provide the capital and the traveling partner would execute a commercial enterprise (generally maritime transport), the initial capital would be returned to the investing partner and the remaining profits would then be split.^[9] The commenda was in essence as joint-stock company for the financing of a single expedition.^[7] Depending on the contribution of the traveling partner, historians define two types of commenda:

• Unilateral commenda: the investing partner would contribute the capital and a traveling partner none; the profits would be split three fourth for the investing partner and one fourth for the traveling partner.^[10] The investing partner bore all liability for loss, while the traveling partner bore none.^[4] The Statutes of Marseille of 1253 state protected the traveling partner against lawsuits following shipwreck or capture of the ship.^[4] It was called commendatio in Venice.^[8]
• Bilateral commenda, the investing partner would put up two-thirds of the capital and the traveling partner one third, and the profits would be split evenly.^[10] The investing partner bore two-thirds of any loss, while the traveling partner bore one third.^[4] It was called colleganza or collegantia in Venice and societas in Genoa.^[8][1]

Each individual contract was different, and sometimes the investment was a share in a ship.^[10]

The origins of the commenda are debated, and likely derived from several sources including the Babylonian tapputûm, the Greco-Roman societas consensu contracta and foenus nauticum, the Byzantine chreokoinonia, the Muslim qirad, and the Jewish 'isqa.^[11][12][1] Although it has precedent in these previous types of contracts, the commenda has peculiarities of its own.^[1] The first mention of the Venetian colleganza dates to 1073, but it had been used since the 10th century.^[13][8] By the 12th century, the commendatio had supplanted the colleganza in Venice.^[8]